Instrumented Rotary Tablet Machines I: Design Construction and Performance as Pharmaceutical Research and Development Tools

Two conventional rotary tablet compressing machines, the Stokes models 540–35 and BB2–27, have been instrumented to measure both compressional and ejectional forces. This was accomplished by attaching strain gauges to key components of the presses and displaying the electrical outputs of the strain gauges on a dual-beam oscilloscope fitted with a camera. The compressional and ejectional forces developed during the tableting operation are thus obtained under dynamic conditions. The design, construction, and performance of these instrumented rotary tablet machines (IRTM) are described and illustrated.